The present invention relates to the display of information items in an aircraft and more particularly to a method and a device for managing information in an aircraft.
The display systems of modern aircraft make it possible to inform the crew members about the state of the aircraft. The information items are generally presented on screens in the cockpit and/or in the cabin, in the form of messages and of block diagrams representative of the equipment items of the aircraft. These information items comprise continuously displayed data as well as data that can be displayed according to the phase of flight in progress and to the active alerts.
FIG. 1 illustrates a simplified example of a system, known as SD (initials for System Display in English terminology), for displaying information about the equipment items of an aircraft. As represented, this system comprises a viewing display 100 connected to equipment items 105-1 to 105-m of the aircraft, for example sensors or computers, via a selection module 110.
By way of illustration, equipment items 105-1 to 105-m are the auxiliary power monitoring unit (APU, initials for Auxiliary Power Unit in English terminology), an electrical system monitoring unit (ELEC), a hydraulic system monitoring unit (HYD) and a landing gear system monitoring unit (WHEEL).
Selection module 110 comprises automatic selection inputs associated, for example, with the alarm system of the aircraft, and manual selection inputs activated by the pilot.
The information items are generally displayed by pages, known as SD pages, according to a predetermined format. Although, in exceptions, certain pages of the display system present information items relating to several systems of the aircraft, each page in principle relates to a single system of the aircraft and presents a static view of that system.
The term “view” as used here refers to a grouping of information items. The expression “static view” or “page” refers to an invariable grouping of information items. Although the information items presented in a static view may evolve, the manner in which they are grouped does not.
These pages are used in particular to initialize the corresponding systems, to monitor them, to identify and isolate faults or else to validate a configuration. The operational procedures recommend consulting them regularly, even in the absence of any fault.
The crew may rely on each of these pages, sometimes under critical conditions, to access the right data at the right instant. These pages present static views of the systems with which they are associated, and they must contain a set of information items that make it possible to respond to different needs and to different situations. As a result, these pages are crammed. This phenomenon is exaggerated by the limited size of the display screens and the increasing complexity of equipment items of aircraft.
Moreover, depending on the situations, the needs of the crew may vary. Several different pages must then be browsed.
It is pointed out here that such static views of aircraft systems necessitate effort on the part of the crew in order to retrieve all of the information items necessary to manage a situation.
In addition, it has been observed that the definition of view plays a determining role for assimilation of information by the crew. Thus, when the situation of an aircraft is evolving from an abnormal situation to a more complex situation, for example when a new fault develops even though the first is still present, the display of new information items may be difficult for the crew to assimilate, by reason of other information items that have previously been displayed, for example in the same color.
New pages are sometimes created to respond to particular operational needs and to aid the crew in reacting correctly. Thus, to aid the crew in managing a complex situation, one or more specific pages may be created depending on the aircraft and the procedures employed. On the whole, their number increases, thus generating complexity in their management.
In addition, since the management of aircraft systems represents one of the four main tasks that a pilot must perform, simplification of access to the pertinent information items of the aircraft systems makes it possible to reduce the workload of the pilots.